2.5 billion Harris County flood control bond electionset for August 25th 2018 ! (Houston: real estate, refrigerators)

[SK115]

As someone that flooded during Harvey due to the release of the Barker and Addicks reservoirs, voting yes was the obvious choice.

I would have voted in favor of it before Harvey.

I'm not sure if a third reservoir is feasible. I'm not sure where it would go. It seems they would have to demolish many square miles of houses to get one.

Perhaps expanding the Addicks and Barker Reservoirs is more realistic?

I would hope that they are able to widen and deepen Buffalo Bayou.

[Hopeful for Life]

Originally Posted by SK115

As someone that flooded during Harvey due to the release of the Barker and Addicks reservoirs, voting yes was the obvious choice.

I would have voted in favor of it before Harvey.

I'm not sure if a third reservoir is feasible. I'm not sure where it would go. It seems they would have to demolish many square miles of houses to get one.

Perhaps expanding the Addicks and Barker Reservoirs is more realistic?

I would hope that they are able to widen and deepen Buffalo Bayou.

My auto was totaled from the Barker reservoir vandalism also, but I don’t believe that taxpayers should pay for such projects. Let relocating businesses and charge extra taxes to those that come here from other states and countries. At one time (maybe still), California charged about $300 to register an out of state vehicle in Calif. back in the early 90s, that was a good sum of $. Texas could charge multiples of that since so many of the out of staters come from $$. I voted NO today.

[TheMoreYouKnow]

Originally Posted by Hopelesscause

My auto was totaled from the Barker reservoir vandalism also, but I don’t believe that taxpayers should pay for such projects. Let relocating businesses and charge extra taxes to those that come here from other states and countries. At one time (maybe still), California charged about $300 to register an out of state vehicle in Calif. back in the early 90s, that was a good sum of $. Texas could charge multiples of that since so many of the out of staters come from $$. I voted NO today.

Why shouldn't tax payers pay to improve things like storm drainage and flood control in their communities, counties and states? Why did you call your car flooding vandalism?

[Hopeful for Life]

Originally Posted by TheMoreYouKnow

Why shouldn't tax payers pay to improve things like storm drainage and flood control in their communities, counties and states? Why did you call your car flooding vandalism?

I call it vandalism because it WAS!! Govt made a conscious decision to let the water out of the reservoir WITHOUT giving compensation to those whose property and possessions were destroyed. I was insured, but still had to pay sales taxes and fees AGAIN after owning my car for only 1 year. I can understand why they did it, but find them negligent for the damage that they caused. Of course, they don’t see it that way. We are merely pawns in their rotten game.

We wouldn’t even need all of this storm drainage improvements if we weren’t flooded with so many newcomers from out of state and foreigners. Since they brought all of the need for added infrastructure, why not make THEM and the companies that brought them over here PAY for the infrastructure?

[Jack Lance]

Originally Posted by Hopelesscause

I call it vandalism because it WAS!! Govt made a conscious decision to let the water out of the reservoir WITHOUT giving compensation to those whose property and possessions were destroyed. I was insured, but still had to pay sales taxes and fees AGAIN after owning my car for only 1 year. I can understand why they did it, but find them negligent for the damage that they caused. Of course, they don’t see it that way. We are merely pawns in their rotten game.

We wouldn’t even need all of this storm drainage improvements if we weren’t flooded with so many newcomers from out of state and foreigners. Since they brought all of the need for added infrastructure, why not make THEM and the companies that brought them over here PAY for the infrastructure?

Barker and Atticks Reservoirs were constructed in the 1940's. Those areas that were flooded by the release were all developed after those damns were built. That means you are one of those people who contributed to the obsolescence of those damns.

If Houston were half its presence size there still would have been massive flooding during Harvey, so lets deal with the world we have and not one some of us wish we lived in...

[TheMoreYouKnow]

Originally Posted by SK115

As someone that flooded during Harvey due to the release of the Barker and Addicks reservoirs, voting yes was the obvious choice.

I would have voted in favor of it before Harvey.

I'm not sure if a third reservoir is feasible. I'm not sure where it would go. It seems they would have to demolish many square miles of houses to get one.

Perhaps expanding the Addicks and Barker Reservoirs is more realistic?

I would hope that they are able to widen and deepen Buffalo Bayou.

I'm sorry to hear about your home, did you repair/rebuild in the same spot and did you have flood insurance? How's the process been since the flood for you? When you bought your home did the seller or builder warn you at all about the flood potential?

[SK115]

Originally Posted by TheMoreYouKnow

I'm sorry to hear about your home, did you repair/rebuild in the same spot and did you have flood insurance? How's the process been since the flood for you? When you bought your home did the seller or builder warn you at all about the flood potential?

Thank you!

I did have flood insurance, luckily.

I'm almost finished with renovations one year later. I'm staying in the same house, at least for the next couple of years. I hope to sell down the road but am waiting to see if and when the values come back.

The home is right off Buffalo Bayou and built up several feet on Pier and Beam. That should have been my clue to run the other way. But according to the sellers disclosure, the home had never flooded, nor had the garage. The longtime neighbors confirmed that nothing like this had ever happened before. I did learn that the streets had flooded badly in the past, but that wouldn't be included on the sellers disclosure.

I was required by my lender to carry flood insurance, as I'm in the 500 year floodplain. It really was my fault for not having done enough research. If I buy again, I will pay attention more attention to the elevation and avoid floodplains and waterways like the plaque.

[TheMoreYouKnow]

Originally Posted by SK115

Thank you!

I did have flood insurance, luckily.

I'm almost finished with renovations one year later. I'm staying in the same house, at least for the next couple of years. I hope to sell down the road but am waiting to see if and when the values come back.

The home is right off Buffalo Bayou and built up several feet on Pier and Beam. That should have been my clue to run the other way. But according to the sellers disclosure, the home had never flooded, nor had the garage. The longtime neighbors confirmed that nothing like this had ever happened before. I did learn that the streets had flooded badly in the past, but that wouldn't be included on the sellers disclosure.

I was required by my lender to carry flood insurance, as I'm in the 500 year floodplain. It really was my fault for not having done enough research. If I buy again, I will pay attention more attention to the elevation and avoid floodplains and waterways like the plaque.

I'm glad to hear you're getting back to normal, I live far North of the City of Houston but I also own a pier and beam construction home and I've come to realize how rare that is around this area. With your home several feet off the ground how deep did it get in your home? It's hard to believe that this has never happened before but I saw flooding 25' deeper than anyone had ever seen before around here too.

[Mr. Clutch]

Originally Posted by Hopelesscause

I call it vandalism because it WAS!! Govt made a conscious decision to let the water out of the reservoir WITHOUT giving compensation to those whose property and possessions were destroyed. I was insured, but still had to pay sales taxes and fees AGAIN after owning my car for only 1 year. I can understand why they did it, but find them negligent for the damage that they caused. Of course, they don’t see it that way. We are merely pawns in their rotten game.

We wouldn’t even need all of this storm drainage improvements if we weren’t flooded with so many newcomers from out of state and foreigners. Since they brought all of the need for added infrastructure, why not make THEM and the companies that brought them over here PAY for the infrastructure?

Untrue. How long have you lived in Houston? The place flooded the very first year it was founded. We have needed storm drainage improvements, literally, since the city was founded. It's not because of newcomers and population growth. It's the fact that the land is flat, in a floodplain, with poor draining clay soils, and we insist upon building at ground-level without mitigating flooding via adequate detention and infrastructure relative to the impacts of the buildings.

Significant Houston Area Floods Weather Research Center - June 2018

I count 178 major flooding events in 181 years of the city's existence. We have never in our entire history as a city had sufficient infrastructure to address flooding, yet this is somehow the fault of newcomers to the city and businesses to the extent that you feel that its other people's burden to fix this issue we all share? That's selfish, period, whether you like to hear it or not. We all need to accept the fact that we can't continue business as usual and continue on the path we're on and our ultra low taxes may have to go up a bit to get a handle on flooding. Government is by no means blameless in this mess, but they can't get out of it without the people deciding we're actually going to do something about this, and this is in reality only the first step. If Houston really wants to SOLVE flooding issues, rather than just mitigating them, its certainly possible, but takes will and money that we have not shown we have yet. There's a reason a place like Singapore handles its monsoon rains and sea level location much better than Houston with a lot less property and livelihood damage - purely the will to plan things to protect life and property, and its certainly not borne of any fundamental geographical advantage over Houston. We can protect most of our property if we have the will and hopefully we will show that through this election. This is only the beginning of what we need to do to make this city truly resilient.

[WRM20]

Originally Posted by Hopelesscause

My auto was totaled from the Barker reservoir vandalism also, but I don’t believe that taxpayers should pay for such projects. Let relocating businesses and charge extra taxes to those that come here from other states and countries. At one time (maybe still), California charged about $300 to register an out of state vehicle in Calif. back in the early 90s, that was a good sum of $. Texas could charge multiples of that since so many of the out of staters come from $$. I voted NO today.

The additional registration fee for out of state cars that did not comply with California rules was ruled unconstitutional, and California had to refund the fees. That happened in 1997, after we had moved to California and registered my wife's car, paying the fee. 6 months later, we got the refund.

The release from the Barker and Addicks dams was not vandalism. Perhaps you would prefer that the dams fail, releasing all of the water in a very short time.

It would be a violation of the US Constitution to charge people who relocate here a fee.